70-year-old Kamala Pujari, who received the prestigious Padma Shri in 2019 for promoting organic farming and preserving over 100 varieties of indigenous seeds, was reportedly made to dance inside the ICU of a hospital in Cuttack, Odisha, she was admitted to treat a kidney ailment. The purported video of the incident has gone viral on social media.
In the video, one Mamata Behera, who identifies herself as a social worker, was also seen dancing with Pujari before she was discharged from the hospital on Monday.
The unwell 70-year-old Padma Shri awardee has alleged that the female activist forced her to dance against her will.
[VIDEO] Padma Shri Kamala Pujari was ‘forced to dance’ in ICU of SCB hospital; she says it further deteriorated her condition – https://t.co/TVoXRhF8YU#Odisha pic.twitter.com/5WqM6MYp76
— OTV (@otvnews) September 2, 2022
“I do not know the social activist personally. I was forced to dance by her while coming out of the hospital after treatment. Despite saying no, she forced me to dance with her and recorded the video,” Pujari said.
“I repeatedly denied it, but she (Behera) did not listen. I was sick and got tired. This has further deteriorated my health,” Pujari told the media in the Koraput district from where she hails.
The incident came to light after the video of the same went viral.
The video and thereafter Pujari’s statement has now left Odisha’s Paraja tribal community, to which the Padma Shri awardee belongs, enraged. The people of the community have sought action against the social worker for making Pujari dance in the intensive care unit, or ICU, of the government hospital.
Speaking about the incident, the tribal community association chief Harish Muduli said they will protest on the streets if the state government did not act against the social worker.
According to reports, Pujari was admitted to the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack with kidney issues. The event occurred prior to her hospital discharge on Monday. According to medical officials, Pujari was admitted to a special cabin rather than the ICU. “The woman who reportedly made Pujari dance used to visit her at the private cabin,” explained Dr Abinash Rout, the hospital’s registrar (administration). Rajeeb Hial, Pujari’s attendant, said she didn’t know Behera, who had also taken multiple photographs with the Padma Sri awardee.
Meanwhile, the social worker justified her actions by claiming that she was merely trying to “shun Pujari’s laziness”.
